Insects are everywhere, but you don’t want them inside your home to run rampant. Spiders, in particular, bother many homeowners because they are often viewed as creepy and scary. Plus, many people suffer from phobias and fears regarding spiders. If you believe you may have spiders in your home, check out these four common spiders you can find in Illinois.
1. Cellar Spider
You may know cellar spiders as daddy longlegs. They are often found in cold, dark places like cellars. They tend to have a small body with long, skinny legs and no antennae. They can range in size from 0.25 to 0.125 inches. They tend to look pale yellow or light brown.
One way to help prevent cellar spiders is to ensure the cellar is sealed from the outside. Even small cracks or holes can serve as perfect entries for these small spiders. Inside the cellar or basement, reduce moisture, which can attract all bugs.
2. Yellow Sac Spider
As the name suggests, yellow sac spiders are usually yellow, but they may appear more beige or green, and they are all about 0.25 inches long. During the warmer months, these spiders usually want nothing to do with you or your home. However, as the weather gets colder and fall approaches, more and more may try to get inside your house to escape the cold.
Yellow sac spiders are not web-making spiders. Web-making spiders create a sticky web that can catch prey, so the spider may never have to leave its home. Yellow sac spiders are nighttime hunters, so when the sun sets, these little creatures start to scurry around, looking for a meal. While they prefer to hunt insects, they may bite you if they come in contact with your skin and they react defensively.
3. Brown Recluse Spider
Brown recluse spiders thrive well in houses because they are not susceptible to cold winters in an unheated basement or hot summers in an uncooled attic. Brown recluse spiders hunt during the night for food, which usually consists of other spiders. During the day, however, they tend to hide in dark, secluded areas.
Brown recluse spiders will bite you if they are trapped, and these bites can become severely painful and extreme. At first, you may not notice anything, but after a few hours, the bite may become red and swollen, and it can last about three weeks before going away. In some cases, the bite creates a necrotic lesion as the poison destroys the tissue. The wound may take months to heal, and even after healing, there may be a deep scar.
The good thing is they are reclusive and they are not indigenous to Northern Illinois but they can ride along on things and occasionally show up here.
4. Black Widow Spider
The black widow spider is easily spotted thanks to the hourglass design on its back. The average black widow spider can grow to 1.5 inches long. Many people fear black widow spiders because of their powerful venom. If a healthy adult is bitten, the area may become painful or paralyzed, and they may experience nausea and difficulty breathing.
If a black widow spider bites a child, elderly person, or sick person, the bite can be fatal. Luckily, however, they’re not indigenous to Northern Illinois but they also can hitch a ride on something and end up here. Black widow spiders don’t go out of their way to find someone to bite. They tend to only bite in self-defense, so if you avoid them, they will avoid you.
In most cases, spiders want nothing to do with you, but accidents happen, and you or your child could become the victim of a spider bite, including the bite of highly venomous spiders like the brown recluse and black widow. If you would like to know more about getting rid of spiders, contact us at A-Alert Exterminating Services Inc. today.